Edward Nnachi:
Federal Government has concluded plans to come up with Digital Engagement Policy that would hold citizens accountable and then guide government on the best approach to relate with the population digitally.
The Special Adviser to the president on Digital Media, Tolu Ogunlesi, disclosed this at the 2017 Social Media Week (SMW) currently taking in at the Landmark Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The gathering at the event are unanimous that Nigerians should be beware of the contents they dish out on the internet because such are capable of further ruining the image of the country at home and abroad.
Ogunlesi, who was a panelist at the event, said in the age of social media, citizen engagement was no longer an option but a must adding that even through its social investment policies, government was working so hard to relate with and engage the citizens more proactively.
“So far, we have set up an office called the Office of Digital Engagement, which is Digicomng on Tweeter, and I head that office. The office is leading our citizen engagement initiatives. Although there is still a lot of gap, but over the next couple of months you would see more on this. As a government, we need a proper website for the government house. As I said on the panel, we are coming up with a social media policy that will make it mandatory and give guidance on how to go about the way we approach the citizens digitally,” he said.
Asked to comment on the numerous ‘fake’ news being spread on the web over Mr. President’s health, the presidential aide said democracy as a system of government entitles people to express and share their opinion, adding, :”But on our own, we are constantly working to improve our performance, media management and online engagement. And on this, I advise people to be patient and watch-out for government strategic digital initiatives, which is in the pipeline and would start unfolding very soon and I believe that will take our online engagement to the next level.”
Admitting that human beings have the social tendency to express and share their feelings or narratives, he noted that the social media presently give the platforms to amplify them.
He stressed the need for publishers, journalists, bloggers to self-regulate and work with social media platforms like Google and Facebook to sanction and penalize anybody who publishes fake news on using their platforms.
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